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English => News => Topic started by: Redaktion on February 10, 2024, 17:09:40

Title: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Redaktion on February 10, 2024, 17:09:40
A YouTuber named The Net Guy Review recently received a mini PC for review from a Chinese brand called Acemagic. While everything appeared fine during the initial setup, a Windows Defender alert popped up when the reviewer was preparing to test the mini computer. The built-in antivirus software detected spyware that steals passwords, crypto, Steam accounts, and other sensitive user data.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Chinese-mini-PC-gets-caught-for-shipping-with-factory-installed-spyware.801946.0.html
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: ascavav on February 10, 2024, 20:27:57
how can we know guy didn't install that spyware himself, it's just some noname with 25K subscribers

also lol, getting a chinese pc and not even reinstalling clean windows from official source is a CALL for trouble
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 10, 2024, 20:46:36
Quote from: ascavav on February 10, 2024, 20:27:57also lol, getting a chinese pc and not even reinstalling clean windows from official source is a CALL for trouble
Every day I read reviews on marketplaces, where crazy fools (most of the buyers) leave the system installed by Chinese sellers (on laptops refurbished in left factories, under the guise of new ones, according to the description), and even with a clear violation of the factory seals and the replacement of the factory one W11 Home (as can be clearly seen from the datasheet for this model on the manufacturer's website) to the pirated W11 Pro (KMS activation). Moreover, even with the loss of the official key to W11 Home - because the SSD is erased by Chinese sellers before installing a pirated version of the OS.

But these are just trifles against the backdrop of how the vast majority trust their private lives to the manufacturers of Chinese smartphones, using their firmware, although Western ones are not much better, they're just hiding these facts much more carefully.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Heath on February 10, 2024, 23:03:12
Simple just reinstall windows or your own windows on it haha
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Johng on February 11, 2024, 03:05:26
Quote from: ascavav on February 10, 2024, 20:27:57how can we know guy didn't install that spyware himself, it's just some noname with 25K subscribers

also lol, getting a chinese pc and not even reinstalling clean windows from official source is a CALL for trouble

Installing your own OS doesn't mean the system isn't still compromised... Don't buy Chinese products they will have any sensitive data.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: dbjungle on February 11, 2024, 10:07:51
Quote from: Johng on February 11, 2024, 03:05:26
Quote from: ascavav on February 10, 2024, 20:27:57how can we know guy didn't install that spyware himself, it's just some noname with 25K subscribers

also lol, getting a chinese pc and not even reinstalling clean windows from official source is a CALL for trouble

Installing your own OS doesn't mean the system isn't still compromised... Don't buy Chinese products they will have any sensitive data.

If you can't trust Chinese products after clean installing the OS then you can't trust any products.  I always clean install on my computers.  I don't recall seeing Acemagic on the Prism slides, but I do recall seeing Apple and Google.  Both "reputable" brands.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 11, 2024, 11:45:29
Quote from: dbjungle on February 11, 2024, 10:07:51If you can't trust Chinese products after clean installing the OS then you can't trust any products.  I always clean install on my computers.  I don't recall seeing Acemagic on the Prism slides, but I do recall seeing Apple and Google.  Both "reputable" brands.
Do you trust the BIOS firmware (which you have all been prohibited from changing since 2016) or trust the secret coprocessors in all motherboards based on Intel (Intel ME) and AMD PSP chipsets, which are designed to monitor and control your PC in an undocumented mode, made in collaboration with US intelligence agencies?

It's just a matter of trust. And trust in the modern world, which is a cesspool of duplicity and deceit, is a sure sign of dementia.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: D on February 12, 2024, 03:51:42
OEM licence is a lot less than a retail licence in their cost and their resell pricing. You can go to any system builder shops and ask them.

I am not saying that the OS was not pirated, I really don't know either it is or it isn't. But just to make the jump because retail licence cost is higher than the PC retail price is not a valid argument.

I expect notebookcheck to have higher quality articles.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Korndog on February 12, 2024, 04:33:34
Windows 11 home oem licensing is about $100. Don't believe other comments saying it's much cheaper. $143 on regular win 11 home, $120 for oem win 11 home. Check cdw website yourself. Large customers might get 5-10% off or $6-12. So yeah over $100 as article says.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 12, 2024, 13:30:56
Quote from: Korndog on February 12, 2024, 04:33:34Windows 11 home oem licensing is about $100. Don't believe other comments saying it's much cheaper. $143 on regular win 11 home, $120 for oem win 11 home. Check cdw website yourself. Large customers might get 5-10% off or $6-12. So yeah over $100 as article says.
You don't need an M$ license for home, just activate any version you want for free. Licenses are needed only for those who are engaged in business, because only in this case can copywriters prove the existence of financial damage to them, because the presence of profit proves the presence of losses. A private person who is not engaged in entrepreneurial (in its official, legal definition) activity is not in danger of using pirated copies of Windows from a company that illegally (with the deliberate connivance of the antimonopoly authorities of the United States and other countries) controls the bulk of the desktop OS market on the planet.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Rick on February 13, 2024, 10:53:20
You can get windows 10/11 keys for $10. If you don't know this by now in 2024 then you need more braincells.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 13, 2024, 12:51:18
Quote from: Rick on February 13, 2024, 10:53:20You can get windows 10/11 keys for $10. If you don't know this by now in 2024 then you need more braincells.
Those who do this and pay for a pirated key that is not worth a penny are just the most complete idiots on planet Earth. Activation of any version of Windows from 2015 is free and safe.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: RobertJasiek on February 13, 2024, 13:20:34
Quote from: NikoB on February 13, 2024, 12:51:18Activation of any version of Windows from 2015 is free and safe.

How does it work? Why is it legal?
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 13, 2024, 15:31:06
I never claimed that this was legal. I claim that it is 100% safe and free. Thanks to the M$ policy, such methods maintain an overwhelming market share in the desktop OS market.

How idiotic do have to be to buy a key to a pirated version for money? But the opinion of the majority is wrong, because the majority are idiots (c). =)
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Adam234 on February 15, 2024, 03:11:48
Shouldn't zip is also considered as spyware. We comsumers take it for granted it isn't own by by cia?
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 15, 2024, 11:48:36
All popular encryption(archive) tools have "back doors", i.e. deliberately weakened encryption system. Including PGP. And in general, the entire asymmetric encryption apparatus is built on the mathematics of elliptic curves.

By the way, the European Court of Human Rights (a funny construction after what happened in 2020, right?) has just formally recognized the inadmissibility of such methods (deliberately weakening encryption and obtaining access keys to correspondence) at the state level: hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng/#{%22itemid%22:[%22001-230854%22]}

as an obvious path to totalitarianism on the part of the ruling circles. Although this is again only in relation to the actions of the totalitarian authorities of Russia. What about Western governments? And there are facts of violation of these very rights. But who cares about the opinion of some funny court when such things are simply brazenly done with impunity in the quiet of offices?

Always proceed from the fact that there is no safe software, services and products, there are only rational methods that lead to minimizing your own risks to the best of your ability. And for this you need to constantly learn and understand, as well as have critical thinking.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Aboaisha on February 16, 2024, 18:38:45
I had the same experience with Beelink mini PC GTR6 I discovered it too late as the hacker already sent messages to get money or he will spread all my data on the black web fortunately the account which he got data from it was an old account which I was not using it for several years but that was very dangerous and annoying the system was not cheap it was about 900 USD
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: Bob P on February 19, 2024, 11:11:08
I had a similar experience with a Chinese mini PC and the name of the company is DreamQuest which I bought off of Amazon. One trojan and two malware viruses were on it and the version of windows 11 was already activated. I gave a one star review and the company that manufactured it reached out to me to offer a full refund probably so I change my review so they can sell more on Amazon to people who just turn it on and use before checking it and doing a scan before going on line. Wiped drive myself and did a reinstall of windows 11 and it has a digital license free from windows at no cost. So to all the people who buy these cheap mini PC's do yourself a big favor and to save yourself from having your personal information stolen do the same!
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 19, 2024, 20:13:47
Quote from: Bob P on February 19, 2024, 11:11:08So to all the people who buy these cheap mini PC's do yourself a big favor and to save yourself from having your personal information stolen do the same!
Firstly, this no longer helps if Trojans are embedded at the BIOS firmware level or in the device firmware.

Secondly, the majority of the population is so stupid and uneducated in IT, and most importantly monstrously lazy, that they will never implement such recommendations. Moreover, the majority do not read such press and learn about problems when they suffer financially. Losing serious amounts of money or private data teaches such ignoramuses the fastest. People who do not want to understand the risks should be punished, because themselves provoke increased risks for others. This applies to all human life, including "elections".
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: RobertJasiek on February 19, 2024, 21:38:44
Learning about security can greatly reduce risks but not to zero. Affected by malware nevertheless is not deserved. The criminals must still be held responsible.
Title: Re: Chinese mini PC gets caught for shipping with factory-installed spyware
Post by: NikoB on February 19, 2024, 23:41:31
In the digital world, the police cannot even find thieves and corrupt officials in offshore areas. Although this is elementary.